Intuitive Eating

Mar 10, 2011

Kathy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: food-habits, nonfiction, self-help

I came across a mention of this book on a blog and thought it sounded interesting. It's about losing the diet mentality and having a healthy relationship with food and our bodies. The book is geared toward chronic dieters, which I am not. I don't think I've ever seriously dieted. Sometimes I'll focus on smaller portions or eating healthier, but I'm not about denying myself foods or counting calories. If I'm hungry I eat. Even though it's not written with me in mind so much, I got some useful and...moreI came across a mention of this book on a blog and thought it sounded interesting. It's about losing the diet mentality and having a healthy relationship with food and our bodies. The book is geared toward chronic dieters, which I am not. I don't think I've ever seriously dieted. Sometimes I'll focus on smaller portions or eating healthier, but I'm not about denying myself foods or counting calories. If I'm hungry I eat. Even though it's not written with me in mind so much, I got some useful and interesting things out of it. While reading it I was more aware of my eating habits and learned interesting things about myself that I hadn't realized. I noticed it's not hard for me to wait until I'm hungry to eat unless I am stressed out. Then I just want to eat. I realized if I take smaller amounts and really think about if I'm satisfied before getting more, I usually am and don't need more. I learned that I have a tendency to want to eat food just because it's available and yummy, whether I'm hungry or not, like at a buffet. I don't like letting food go to waste and tend to clean my plate. I liked the author's comment that it's not going to waste, it's going to waist. The book helped me shake off some of those behaviors, at least while reading it. Since I finished it over a month ago, I've become somewhat less conscious again.

The authors' ideas are basically that we should give ourselves permission to eat whenever and whatever we want, but we need to be conscious about it. Think about if we are hungry, if the food is really what would be most satisfying to us right then, and so on. And then, even if the answers are no, we can eat it anyway if we choose, but it makes us more aware of why we are eating and prevents us from getting into a deprivation mentality where we then turn to eventual splurging and overeating to compensate. We should also stop eating when we are satisfied, rather than just mindlessly eating because there is still food there. It also covers having a realistic expectation of our bodies and learning to accept and appreciate them for what they do. The ideas made a lot of sense to me and it seems like a healthy, balanced approach to eating.(less)

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Sep 11, 2010

Jezzyka rated it

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Hmm... Sigh...

This is, essentially, the way to eat. A lot of people do, naturally, it's not like a special, new-age restrictive idea. But for many of us, who see "Drop a Pant Size in 2 Weeks" and constant headlines on the obesity crisis, we can't help but be affected, to feel that something is wrong with us and we have to be perfect. PERFECT. We have to look like this-- on top of being this, acting like this, and anything less means that something is wrong. We don't have en...more

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Jun 09, 2010

Amy rated it

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I wish, wish, wish that every one of my friends who struggles with her weight, thinks she should diet, or who mentally tallies in her mind what she’s eaten that day or that week to determine if she can eat that “cookie” (or whatever) would read this book. Before reading this book, I thought I was an intuitive eater because I lived by the mantra “eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full”, but reading this book has brought me a new level of peace with food.

The basic premise of ...moreI wish, wish, wish that every one of my friends who struggles with her weight, thinks she should diet, or who mentally tallies in her mind what she’s eaten that day or that week to determine if she can eat that “cookie” (or whatever) would read this book. Before reading this book, I thought I was an intuitive eater because I lived by the mantra “eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full”, but reading this book has brought me a new level of peace with food.

The basic premise of intuitive eating is that when we really listen and tune into our bodies, we will know what to eat and how much. (Several studies on toddlers have found that when small children have free access to a variety of foods, they eat a balanced variety that meets their nutritional needs. We are born knowing what we should eat and how much, but from a very small age we begin to be conditioned as to what we “should” eat. Intuitive eating tries to help you find that inner knowledge about food again.)

We should eat when we’re hungry, eat what we want that will truly satisfy us (lose the idea of what we “should” eat), and stop when we’re full. The primary goal established in this book is to make peace with food so it loses its power, a power I can relate to. Even though I believed in eating when I was hungry and stopping when full, often I would make a mental tally of what I’d eaten that day, or think that I “could” eat 3-4 cookies because of how far I’d run that morning. However, with intuitive eating, I’m learning to block out all the messages of what I “should” eat and how much is appropriate, and really dial into my body’s cues of what I need in that moment. And I’ve never felt healthier or had such a feeling of energy and well-being.

Weight-loss can be a secondary goal of intuitive eating, but the authors, (two registered dieticians with Master’s degrees in nutrition) stress that you really have to be process-focused to make the process work. This means letting go of the scale or whatever metric you use to gauge your weight-loss progress. Instead you need to focus on you feel and the well-being you derive from the process of intuitive eating. Someone who has dieted frequently interspersed with periods of overeating will likely lose weight with intuitive eating until he/she arrives at her natural healthy weight. The authors have repeatedly found that to be the case with their clients.

Probably my favorite parts of the book were reading the science cited by the authors of why dieting both biologically and psychologically DOES NOT WORK for 90-95% of people. Yet people blame themselves rather than the process of dieting, leading to depression, anxiety, and an obsession with food. Not only does dieting reduce your metabolism, but calorie-deprivation leads to periods of overeating. I read on one of the author’s blogs this morning that a review of 31 long-term studies on dieting by UCLA scientists found that dieting is a consistent predictor of weight gain: http://nutrition-info-411.evelyntribole....

I can still hear the skeptic in you saying that if you were given complete permission to eat whatever you wanted, you’d be eating cinnamon rolls all day long, right? I have found through my experience that I actually crave sweets and baked goods at an all-time LOW. My theory is that because my body is constantly receiving the calories I need, I no longer crave desserts like I did before as an assured, quick way to meet (and in some cases exceed) my caloric needs. Additionally, when I know I can have sweets anytime (with full, sincere permission), I don’t need them as much. However, for me, I think the biological process is the more real one for me. Meeting my calorie needs consistently reduces cravings and periods of overeating. The authors have found the same results in their practices; their clients generally arrive at a point where they eat 90% healthy foods and 10% play foods (their term for junk food) through intuitive eating.

I love this process and wish I had found it sooner. I highly recommend this book.
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Apr 22, 2009

Stephanie rated it

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Recommends it for: anyone who wants to stop dieting, eat naturally, and maintain a healthy weight

I initially read this book for a college course and the following is excerpted from a paper I wrote about becoming a lifelong intuitive eater; thus, it is what I learned from this book. The reference to Hirschmann and Munter (1998) is for their book entitled Overcoming Overeating.

Because dieting fails, a new way of eating must be discovered and developed. Such an appropriate eating style is termed “intuitive eating,” or, as Hirschmann and Munter (1988) call it, “demand feeding.” Int...more I initially read this book for a college course and the following is excerpted from a paper I wrote about becoming a lifelong intuitive eater; thus, it is what I learned from this book. The reference to Hirschmann and Munter (1998) is for their book entitled Overcoming Overeating.

Because dieting fails, a new way of eating must be discovered and developed. Such an appropriate eating style is termed “intuitive eating,” or, as Hirschmann and Munter (1988) call it, “demand feeding.” Intuitive eating involves first recognizing the damage of dieting and vowing to discard dieting (Tribole & Resch, 2003). Before engaging in intuitive eating, body acceptance must be cultivated alongside an anti-dieting attitude because it is difficult to reject the diet mentality if one is “unrealistic and overly critical of [his or her:] body shape” (Tribole & Resch, 2003, p. 27). Hirschmann and Munter (1988) frequently refer to the “Change Your Shape and Change Your Life” game in which players believe in the fantasy that if they change their shape through dieting, then their life will magically improve; therefore, players engage in chronic dieting and end up more miserable than when they started. Thus, the key to dumping the diet is to accept one’s body at any size by looking at one’s body objectively in the mirror, tossing the scales (both real and pseudo-), and redoing one’s wardrobe so that clothing is comfortable (Hirschmann & Munter, 1988). Once body acceptance and an anti-dieting mentality are established, a person may begin to engage in intuitive eating.

According to the logic of intuitive eating, if one no longer diets or adheres to restrictive food rules, then he or she must eat on the basis of biological or “stomach” hunger, which is a person’s physiological need to eat (Hirschmann & Munter, 1988). Therefore, intuitive eating involves avoiding psychological or “mouth” hunger, which occurs when a person eats for emotional reasons or because the food looks good or simply because food is available (Hirschmann & Munter, 1988). Such a task may seem daunting at first; therefore, it is important that intuitive eating is approached as a process (unlike one’s approach to diets that demand perfection and quick results) that initially involves a state of hyperconsciousness while eating that will eventually taper off into mindful eating (Tribole & Resch, 2003).

Being conscious of one’s eating includes being able to recognize hunger, neutrally observe one’s food choices, satisfy hunger, and stop eating when one is full (Tribole & Resch, 2003). According to Tribole and Resch (2003), the key to respecting one’s fullness (that is, to stop eating when one is full) is to give oneself unconditional permission to eat.(less)

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Nov 23, 2009

Felicia rated it

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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 18, 2011

Laurie rated it

This book has completely changed the way I eat. I have always considered myself a positive, upbeat person who is kind and loving to everyone including myself. This book showed me how I was denying myself food and torturing myself every time I ate. I was not being kind to me.

No more dieting. No more denying myself food because it is "not good for me". It is just like she says in the book --if you tell a child they can play with any toy in the room but the pink elephant, ...more

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Jan 22, 2010

Jen V rated it

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Now that it's been almost 7 years since first being introduced to Intuitive Eating I can honestly say the concepts in this book actually really did change my life and allowed me to "make peace with food". I think I have the first edition (there are now 4) which although the writing is a little (okay a lot) hoakie the concepts are priceless. I do have to say I initially read this book as part of coursework while studying nutrition at USU so I never had the experience of picking it up an...more

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Apr 25, 2008

Jessica rated it

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I loved this book. If you are SERIOUSLY tired of the diet roller coaster, this book is a great alternative. Due to the pregnancy (where my body has NO intuition), I've kind of stopped following it. It's not a quick lose weight method, but it's all about being sane and healthy.

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Mar 05, 2010

Christina rated it

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Recommended to Christina by: Becky Robinson

Shelves: nonfiction-health

This is an excellent book about listening to your body's signals when eating and exercising. It sort of reminded me of French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure except that the authors are well-qualified nutritionists with a lot of experience helping people with eating disorders.

This book contains very few guidelines on nutrition. Instead, the focus is on our having a healthy relationship with food - enjoying what you eat, eating for hunger instead of boredom, n...more

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Aug 21, 2009

Kimberly rated it

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I really loved this book. It referenced Covey's Seven Habits "paradigm shift" at the beginning, stating that that perspective shift was the purpose of the book. Having been trying to lose baby weight off and on for the last 9+ years I related to a lot of this and had several "aha" moments. I found it very insightful and helpful and will reread this in the future. (As for being "revolutionary" it is actually sad they felt the term was applicable. It is about he...more

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Dec 28, 2010

Nancy Cluff rated it

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A program for those who have hit "diet bottom" to help learn to eat naturally, without emotional eating or overeating.
My main complaint is that it's hard to put the principles into practice with the book alone. It would be great to have a support group. I've also purchased the audio from the same authors which includes what they call "practices" to help learn the principles, almost as if you were seeing them for diet counseling.
I've not lost much weight (yet), but ...more

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Mar 02, 2009

Liz rated it

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Ok, I've never read a diet book, but I was assured before hand that this wasn't a diet book. It turned out to be a fabulous read. This was our January book club book and it turned out to be a great discussion on eating habits and the way we view food. There is a lot to the concept, but it revolves around not feeling guilty for eating, listening to your body, and being healthy.....no dieting. I like that it kept emphasizing that there are no 'bad' foods. Anyway, there's lots to this concept...more

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Mar 08, 2009

Elisa rated it

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My personal trainer recomended that I read book when we started our workout sessions together. This was an amazing book that really allowed me to break away from "dieting" and really just focusing on making smarter choices with the foods I ate....while, not denying myself yummy treats now and then (...and in moderation). Everyone has an eating story that they could relate too. Plus it's written by registered dietians, that give excellent "real life" advice. I highly recommend...more

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Sep 04, 2009

Elizabeth rated it

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Shelves: nonfiction-body-wisdom

I greatly enjoyed this insightful, if slightly overselling explanation of intuitive eating, the authors' working method in the field of nutrition. Their approach is empowering and practical, and unique in the field. I believe that many, many people who struggle or have struggled with food will find something of value in this, whether you use parts of their ideas to supplement your relationship to food or commit to their complete process.

First, an example. A couple months ago, I sa...moreI greatly enjoyed this insightful, if slightly overselling explanation of intuitive eating, the authors' working method in the field of nutrition. Their approach is empowering and practical, and unique in the field. I believe that many, many people who struggle or have struggled with food will find something of value in this, whether you use parts of their ideas to supplement your relationship to food or commit to their complete process.

First, an example. A couple months ago, I sat with a half-eaten supper in my bowl, and I spoke out loud about the struggle I was having just then. I didn't want to stuff myself uncomfortably, but it seemed to be the only way I could have a satisfying supper. Gabe said to me, "You know, if you stop eating now, you can always eat more later if you get hungry." I could eat later? But there are rules! I can't eat too late in the evening! I then decided that my desire for a satisfying and pleasant supper experience was more important to me than following an old rule. I ate and I listened to my body with care, stopping when I felt full, knowing that I could get more later if I needed it. Since making the decision to do that frequently, I've gone from stuffing myself to discomfort at supper about 80% of the time, to doing it about 10% of the time.

Without either of us knowing it, we were enacting a central tenet (and strategy) of this book. It is the authors' basic premise that our bodies can be trusted to know what they need and when they are hungry, if we can strip away the unhealthy conditioning we've taken in and stop second-guessing our bodies. For many of us, and for the authors' primary target audience, this means thoroughly understanding and letting go of the diet mentality in all its guises, and nurturing healthy, positive, productive self-talk. The key is completely removing ourselves from rules, which create forbidden actions and foods. These taboos can trigger a starvation response in us... which is surprisingly rampant in our culture of food abundance. By encouraging ourselves to know on a deep level that we can eat what we want and that we will not deprive our bodies, we free ourselves of primal triggers that have us battling scarcity thinking. By removing rules we have imposed on ourselves from the outside - from innumerable sources, many of them well-meaning - we can remove obstacles to hearing our own intuitive interactions with food. This is a fundamental trust in the wisdom of our bodies, something I deeply value.

The book gives a psychologically sound framework for understanding some of the inner voices that can affect our relationship to food, and provides many different strategies for strengthening our own "intuitive eater." The book's content does sometimes get quite repetitious. But since we're talking about changing embedded beliefs, it's logical to review and repeat the pertinent ideas over and over again, to absorb them deeply. Before completing this book, a reader will have already had the opportunity to reflect on the ideas and dig out a few obstacles they may find to their own healthier eating habits.

In a chapter towards the back, the authors address that group of individuals that have required another step before finding that inner voice -- those battling full-fledged eating disorders, that need interventions to minimize the threat before proceeding to the practice of hearing more subtle cues. The authors don't pretend to offer a easy-to-follow manual to exit out of such complex issues... but in addressing eating disorders, they have the same type of deep respect for the body and its survival mechanisms that Kate Bornstein did in "Hello Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks and Other Outlaws". Both sources value all coping mechanisms as something sacred and imaginative, as creative problem-solving. When we start from a place of respecting the ways we manage our problems, we can look practically at what survival and health really mean, and how to expand our healthiest survival skills.

I read parts of this book years ago, and began then to incorporate some ideas. I love getting the feedback from two trained nutritionists that a body's desires for food can be respected and trusted. At that point in my life, I didn't want to leave the more traditional strategy of counting calories and using math to get the pounds down. But now, I am more interested in feeling good and not fighting with food. They have convinced me that they have some great ideas that I want to incorporate into my lifestyle.
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Nov 07, 2008

Rachelle rated it

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It took me a long time to read this book, mainly because I read it very slowly so that I could absorb all of the concepts. This book is all about making peace with food and with the body you have. It is not another diet book; in fact, the main theme of the book is the necessity of rejecting the "diet mentality" once and for all. The authors point out that almost all diets eventually fail, and most people chastise themselves for not having the “willpower” or “self-control” to be succ...more

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Aug 08, 2011

Jennifer Glass added it · review of another edition

This is the last time I read a dieting or anti-dieting book. Reading about food just makes me want to eat more of it, whether it's reading about how to diet or how not to diet. Seems like these authors have a good program, but reading about people who have solutions to help me obsess more about food, or people who have programs to help me not obsess about food, ends with the same result: obsessing about food. Moral of the story is exercise a lot and try to eat healthy and don't think too much ab...more

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Aug 20, 2008

Mindy rated it

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Recommends it for: Anyone who is tired of the dieting game and wants to eat in a healthy manner

I debated entering this here, as this is more about my eating issues than literature. But hey - it was a book I read and ill likely read again soon, so I added it.

It's basically about reteaching ourselves to eat when we're hungry, and to eat what we want. Sounds simple, but I find I really have to think about it and not just eat because it's 9AM or Noon, etc.

It's also about eating "real food." I'm no longer fixating on low-sugar, low-calorie, fat-free stuff. I'd...more

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Dec 31, 2008

Christy rated it

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This is a good book for anyone who wants to learn a new process for becoming less dependent on the diet mentality and more comfortable with their own bodies' way of feeling satisfied with food. Be comfortable with who you are, your beautiful body, learn not to pass on disordered eating behaviors to the next generation by remaining in tune with your brain and stomach, not relying on a diet to tell you when to eat and how much.

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Jan 11, 2011

Beth rated it

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This book was such a good read. While I was reading I kept thinking to myself about much this book made sense. Although the principles are just common sense to follow them you have to throw out a lifetime of mixed signals.

This book opened my eyes to the traps I was walking into. I am so glad I read this book and love my friend Tara for having be our book club book (and it's the first one Leslie finished on time!)

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Jul 07, 2009

Megan rated it

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This book has helped me in recovery from my Eating Disorder. It's what they teach at one of the top Eating Disorder facility's in the world. It. is. AMAZING.

Get back in touch with your initial intuitive eating skills, that came to you so naturally as a child. Eat what you really want, when you really want it. Enjoy food. Get to your natural healthy weight and love your body. Stop obsessing and start living!

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Jun 27, 2010

Andrea rated it

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A great companion to Geneen Roth's book Women Food and God. While Roth has struggled with disordered eating herself, the authors of this book are nutritionists treating patients with disordered eating. This book has quite a bit about the thought process behind eating and how to move in a more healthy direction. The tone is compassionate, and you can tell that the authors have been able to learn so much from their patients because they really respect and love them, even if they (the authors) h...more

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Dec 07, 2011

Nancy rated it

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Recommended to Nancy by: saw it at the library

Shelves: guidebook-diy

This is the 4th book about this topic - stop dieting, start honoring and listening to your body - that I have read and it is the least helpful (Trying not to say 'the worst.') It is geared toward chronic dieters, which I would say I am not, but they explain how most of us are geared toward controlling our food in some way, so that is understandable. The authors spend a lot of effort (too much talking) explaining how to honor your hunger and tune into and trust your body, but end the program with...more

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Jan 11, 2010

Terri rated it

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Shelves: 2010, nonfiction

I'm not usually a huge fan of self-help books, but this one was recommended to me by a professional. I just finished it last week, and I may become disillusioned over time, but so far, I think this was a brilliant book. I recommend it to most people. The book tackles the diet industry and discusses a process for physically and psychologically recovering from the dirt/over indulgence cycle.

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Dec 27, 2011

Brittanie rated it

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I don't know. I guess a lot of this is practical advice but a lot of the advice also seems a little weak. Getting people to automatically undo years of negative imagery and messages from media, family and society on eating and weight standards seems like more than what a simple book like this can accomplish. It's also dry, boring and LONG, and yet, I felt somehow required to finish it.

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Aug 12, 2010

Katie rated it

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I truly reccommend this book to anyone who is "dieting" or struggling to get started on a life of healthy eating. I agree with so many concepts in this book I found myself saying, it is about time that someone wrote something reasonable and applicable to anyone. There was a little focus on eating disorders, but I found it easy to apply it to an average person as well.

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Nov 26, 2008

Aria Bethards rated it

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This will change your perspective of food and body image. It teaches you to be more conscious of your hunger/full signals, eating habits, and thoughts/feelings about food and your body. I encourage everyone to read it! Hopefully more and more people can let go of harmful diets and start spending their time/energy/money on more important things!

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May 23, 2010

Camille rated it

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A required read for my sister's dietetic's major. Aimed at the chronic dieter, this book focuses on honoring your true hunger and changing incorrect view points about food, nutrition and body image. If you're craving chocolate, then eat it and get on with it instead of grazing extra unfulfilling calories. I liked it. Has some good points.

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Jun 04, 2010

Joanna rated it

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So far, seems comprehensive if a little 'talky' and less 'doing', but many good charts to fill in and assess yourself. Basic premise is that dieting mentalities actually have an opposite effect on weight loss and create focus on food instead. Definitely helpful for examining food thinking and habits; many would connect with any parts of this book.

Overall could be very helpful for a self-starter who can select out helpful bits for themselves without being overwhelmed by lots of inform...more

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Jun 17, 2011

Jacquie rated it

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This book provides a very real approach to eating. It touches on many psychological, emotional, and physical aspects of eating and its relation to social, media, and familial influences. I appreciated the research and academia of the book, but also the personal experiences and examples that the authors incorporated into their writing.

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Dec 09, 2008

Andrea rated it

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As you can tell by my current list of books, I am kind of in an obsessive phase of reading about non-dieting and "intuitive eating"... I liked this book and would probably buy it if I had a nickel to my name, damn economy. For now, it shall remain on the shelves of the Madison Public Library for you to check out.

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